"Alright, should I ask him for spots? How many of us should go?"
Zhang Yang did a quick calculation and said a bit conservatively, "Let's start with five. When it comes to competitions, it's about quality, not quantity! In case someone has an emergency last minute, it's easier to find an angler to fill in!"
"Sure thing, you organize the anglers, and leave the registration to me!"
…
After hanging up the phone, Zhang Yang started to secretly calculate on his fingers.
In terms of attendance rate, there are many anglers among the store's customers with free time, but having a high attendance rate doesn't necessarily mean their skills are good. Zhang Yang is signing up for this competition to achieve results, not just to casually participate.
After considering over and over, he decided that Lao Zhao and Wang Jun definitely need to be counted in, and Zhang Yang himself as well, leaving two more spots if it's five total.
For the remaining two spots, Zhang Yang plans to let Wang Yan and Meng Fan fill them.
Why these two? They're both newcomers to fishing, so in terms of sheer skills, they might not be stronger than many seasoned anglers.
First, they are quite close to Zhang Yang, so they listen to him and execute his advice seriously. Zhang Yang can teach his skills to anglers, but these anglers need to earn his trust, and he trusts these two.
Second, in Zhang Yang's eyes, they are anglers who think while fishing. If unexpected situations arise, they know how to adjust and adapt, unlike many ordinary anglers who might just blindly push through without changing tactics.
There's always a way to deal with lack of experience — Zhang Yang can help form strategies. What he fears are those who are both inexperienced and overly ambitious, plus don't listen. Without exceptional luck, landing on a fish spot, it's tough to achieve results.
Having made up his mind, Zhang Yang took out his phone and dialed each of them.
"What? There's a fishing competition this weekend? Count me in!" Upon hearing this news, Wang Yan got excited immediately.
Meng Fan had a similar reaction; hearing Zhang Yang's initial plan to register him, he also got a bit worked up.
By early afternoon, Lao Zhao had arranged the registrations, and upon receiving the call, all four arrived at Zhang Yang's shop.
Wang Yan asked, "How are we going to handle the competition? Are we going to come up with some strategies?"
Meng Fan chimed in, "Yeah, Zhang Yang, whatever strategies you suggest, I'm in! I haven't competed before!"
Zhang Yang grinned slightly, "Don't be nervous. Though we call it a fishing competition, it's essentially a branding type of guided fishing — the rules are just slightly changed! Let me first tell you about the differences.
First, hand-casting is not allowed in this competition! Only lead-sinkers or double hooks are permitted. This is beneficial for us since everyone is skilled at lead-sinker casting basics.
Second, the rod limit is 5.4 meters; one rod only! Meaning, no short rods are allowed!
This might affect the catch a bit, but it's not a big deal! If you're unsure, you can practice with long rods at close range! The competition is over the weekend; you have ample time in the next couple of days."
"That's it? Doesn't seem too different from regular guided fishing!"
"What about bait? How should we handle fish bait and additives?"
Zhang Yang continued, "I've enrolled everyone, so bait and additives will be provided by me! Before the competition, I'll prepare them uniformly and distribute them evenly! Three kilos of bait, plus one kilo of backup."
"Really? No secret weapons or anything? Like any top-secret bait or additives you have stashed away? Share them with us!" Wang Yan said playfully, glancing at Zhang Yang with a sly look.
Zhang Yang smiled and shook his head, "I don't have any secret stashed bait or additives, but I can teach you techniques suitable for competitions!
Everyone got their gear, right? Let's head to Wen River for a lesson now! If you can master the two tricks I teach, you'll definitely gain an advantage!"
"My gear's in the car!"
"Mine too!"
"Let's go!"
Upon hearing Zhang Yang was about to teach them two tricks, everyone got excited. Previously, things learned from Zhang Yang were very practical, and they were curious what he would teach this time.
Quickly, Zhang Yang gathered five bags of granular powder and a bag of pure grain powder, took a large bait mixing bowl, and loaded them into the car along with fishing equipment.
Five individuals, three cars, headed straight to the Wen River bank.
At this time of day, Wen River wasn't yielding fish, so there weren't many people around. Zhang Yang and the others settled in a shady spot by some trees.
Granular powder and pure grains are affordable fishing baits typically used as a base or for casting — Zhang Yang was using them mainly for teaching purposes, not aiming for high attraction effect.
He mixed them together quickly, then stirred while sprinkling water, shaping the bait into a moderate loose bomb state.
"Everybody gets a portion. Now, let's start teaching the fishing technique!
First, I call it 'Hitting the Frog!'
This technique is often used in competitive fishing. In detail, it involves using a long rod, as allowed by rules, to fish a close spot!"
While speaking, Zhang Yang demonstrated with a fishing rod.
He pinched two pieces of triangle cannon with the double hooks, but consciously didn't cast fully, instead positioned the bait at various spots: 3.6 meters, 4.5 meters directly in front.
"Hitting the Frog? Is this similar to how we use short rods for close-range fishing with new fish?" Wang Jun couldn't help but ask after hearing.
"Exactly! In competitions, the rod size is regulated, but the actual fish schools might be close by. At this time, the hitting the frog technique has an advantage over normal far-range fishing!
Everyone try casting a few empty lines following my demonstration to get the feel, then I'll explain the key techniques and points to note!"
Soon, all four of them were mimicking pinching two loose bomb baits, attempting close-range casting.
When Zhang Yang demonstrated earlier, it looked simple, but in practice, it turned out not to be as easy as it seemed.
They had trouble controlling the power during casting, making bait land inconsistently, near on one cast, far on another, with landing points differing up to half a meter.
The second issue was casting close-range, where the main line remained slightly bent in the water, affecting force transmission upon rod lift — often causing the line to snag on the rod.
Zhang Yang patiently observed their performance for a while and formed a preliminary judgment.
"Alright, I've observed the situation and summarized a few issues, along with solutions!
The most prominent issue is the bait landing point! In non-full-casting states, it's difficult to find reference marks, making the landing points too scattered!
This can be solved by fixing the casting posture and direction and finding a stable exertion point.
If each cast has similar power, the landing points will generally form a concentrated area! Once you become proficient, casting will develop into a muscle memory.
The second problem is that the fishing line tends to snag upon rod lift! This issue can't be entirely avoided; even professional anglers sometimes face it during hitting the frog, especially if the response to fish biting is slightly delayed!
The solution is not to place the rod on a stand after casting, but hold it upright, keeping the main line taut!
That way, when a fish bites at a close spot, the response time to lift the rod and hook the fish becomes quite swift!
When lifting, apply the force smoothly to prevent the sinker seat resistance from causing excessive bending at the rod tip, which might flick the line into a tangle when emerging from the water!
Before starting, ideally prepare two identical fishing rod setups as backups, so if one gets tangled, you can swap it immediately!